Apparatus for applying bridging means to a contoured roofing tile

ABSTRACT

APPARATUS FOR APPLYING A BRIDGE ACROSS THE TROUGH OF A CONTOURED ROOFING TILE IN ORDER TO INHIBIT OR PREVENT RAIN WATER PENETRATING BETWEEN OVERLAPPING TILES WHEN IN POSITION ON A ROOF, COMPRISING, A MEMBER DEFINING A CHAMBER WHICH IS CHARGED FROM A HOPPER WITH A SAND AND CEMENT MIXTURE BY OPERATION OF A FIRST PLUNGER, THE MEMBER THEN BEING MOVED TO A POSITION ABOVE THE TILE, WHEREUPON THE CHARGE IS PRESSED INTO THE TILE BY OPERATION OF A SECOND PLUNGER.

3,606,652 APPARATUS FOR APPLYING BRIDGING MEANS TO A CONTOURED L. G. HAMMOND Sept. 21,1971

' ROOFING TITLE med Oct. 1 1968 United States Patent O1 fice 3,606,652 r APPARATUS FOR APPLYING BRIDGING MEANS TOA CONTOURED ROOFING TILE Leslie Gerald Hammond, Bletchley, ngland, assiguor to Anchor Building Products Limited, Leighton Buzzard, Bedfordshire, England Filed Oct. 16, 1968, Ser. No. 768,146 Claims priority, applicatiol61 (zl/rzat Britain, Feb. 9, 1968,

Int. Cl. B28b 13/0 5 U.S. Cl. 25-103 6 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This invention relates to apparatusfor use in applying bridging means to a contoured roofing tile of the type which includes a trough extending between the head and tail portions of the tile. The bridging means are applied across the tile trough. An example of such apparatus is disclosed in German Auslegeschrift? patent application No. $1,126,791, dated Mar. 29, 1962'.

Contoured roofing tiles of this type are generally laid in overlapping relationship over roof surfaces having a certain angle of pitch. In recent years the tendency has been' for this angle of pitch to decrease partly because of external design considerations and also because by reducing thepitch angle the actual roof area is also reduced with corresponding saving in roofing materials. On roofs of this type gaps exist between the overlapping tiles through which rain water may penetrate along the tile troughs and decreasing the pitch of a roof facilitates this penetration. -In order to inhibit or prevent this penetration each tile is provided with a bridge which forms'a barrier against the rain water.

The object of the present invention is to provide apparatus for use in applying the bridges to the tile during manufacture of the tile.

According to the present invention there is provided apparatus for applying bridging means to a contoured roofing title including:

(a) a hopper having an aperture in its base,

(b) a displaceable member having a chamber and (c) a plunger device comprising first and second plungers, said chamber being located, in one position of said member, directly below said aperture when said first plunger is operative to charge said chamber with material and, in another position of said member, being located directly below said secondplunger, said second plunger then being operative to discharge the material in said chamber onto the tile.

In order that the invention may be more fully understood one embodiment of the invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawing in which,

FIG. 1 shows a contoured roofing tile in section to which a bridge has been applied,

FIG. 2 shows one form of apparatus for applying the bridge to the tile of FIG. 1.

Referring to FIG. 1 the tile is made of a sand and cement mixture and is conveniently manufactured using an extrusion operation. A continuous ribbon having the 3,606,652 Patented Sept. 21, 1971 required cross-sectional shape is extruded and tile forming lengths are severed from the ribbon. The bridge is formed on each tile by pressing a bar 2 of the material from which the tile 1 itself is being made into the trough of the ribbon before the tile forming length is severed from the ribbon, the bar 2 being pressed into the ribbon by about 4; inch.

Referring to FIG. 2 the apparatus for applying bridges to a continuous ribbon of extruded material comprises a hopper 14, which contains the sand and cement mixture, and two pneumatically operable plungers 1-5, 16. The

J plungers-15, 16 are disposed on opposite sides respectively of the back plate 17 of the hopper 14 such that the plunger 15 is disposed inside the hopper 14 and the plunger 16 is disposed outside the hopper 14. A slit shaped aperture 1'8 is provided at the base of the hopper 14, through which sand apd cement mixture may be discharged. The hopper 14 is mounted on a frame comprising two spaced and parallel channel form members 19 along which a rectangular plate 20 may be slidably displaced, the channels in said members 19 serving as guide grooves for the slidable displacement of the plate 20.

The plate 20 has an aperture 21 and the dimensions of the aperture 21' correspond to the dimensions of the bridge to be formed. Two screws 22 are provided'on the plate 20 for aligning the aperture 18 in the hopper 14 with the aperture21 inthe plate 20 for charging the aperture 21 and for aligning the aperture "21 with the plunger 16 for discharging the contents of the aperture 21 onto the continuous ribbon.

A base plate 23 is disposed beneath the aperture 18 in the hopper 14 and spaced therefrom to allow the plate 20 to be inserted between this plate 23 and the hopper 14. This base plate 23 is contoured such that when the aperture 21 in the plate 20 is in a charging position beneath the hopper 14 it not only prevents sand and cement mixture being forced straight through the aperture 21 but also enables the base of a sand and cement mixture charge in the aperture .21 to be formed in the desired manner under pressure from the plunger 15. An agitator 24 driven by a chain and sprocket arrangement 25 is disposed in the hopper 14. This agitator 24 serves to keep that part of the hopper 14 beneath the plunger 15 charged with sand and cement mixture.

In operation the aperture 21 in the plate '20 is aligned with the aperture 18 in the hopper 14 and the plunger 15 is operated whereby the aperture 211 is charged with sand and cement mixture. The mixture is pressed against the contoured base plate 23 and against the walls of the aperture such that the charge is formed in the desired shape. The aperture 21 is subsequently aligned by means of the screws 22 with the plunger 16 and the plunger operated thus displacing; the charge in the aperture 21 onto the continuous ribbon of extruded material. The apparatus is mounted for reciprocation and, during a discharging stroke of the plunger 16, moves with the ribbon of extruded material so that the bridge comprising the mixture charge in the aperture 21 is correctly pressed into the ribbon.

I claim:

1. Apparatus for applying bridging means to a contoured roofing tile including:

(a) a hopper having an aperture in its base,

(b) a displaceable member having a chamber,

(c) a plunger device comprising first and second plungers, said first plunger being located in said hopper, said second plunger being located outside said hopper, said chamber being located, in one position of said member, directly below said aperture when said first plunger is operative to charge said chamber with material and, in another position of said member,

1 being located directly below said second plungengsaidwz-l- 2. Apparatus according to claim 1, in which said plung- 5 ers are pneumatically operable.

3. Apparatus according to claim 1, in which a base plate is provided spaced from the base of said hopper, said member, in said one position, being disposed between said hopper and said plate and said plate providing a base for said chamber to prevent material passing straight through said chamber during charging of said chamber.

4. Apparatus according to claim 3, in which said base plate is contoured in dependence upon the shape desired for the base of a charge of material. I

5. Apparatus according to claim 3, in which two channel form members are provided as a support for said member, said member being slidably disposed in the channels of said channel form members.

Apparatus according to claim 5, in which screws are provided for aligning said member in said one or said other position by slidable displacement of said member along said channel form members.

1,126,791 3/1962 -Germ any.

JTSPENCER OVERHOLSER, Primary amine;

15 L. R. FRYE, Assistant Enaminer 

